Ay no. Please don't say that because it would justify it.
The largest biz in the U.S. came to be based on cash flow from most illegal activities. The casinos, the betting on horses, hotels, bars, corner shops, etc... Cities like Miami came to be what they are today based on drug money.
Colombia is a country made by Cocaine... Chile's is another country that developed on the back of a super corrupted military regime and 90% illegal activities all around. Puerto Rico is a drug den that only saw some vertical growth once the drug cash flow kicked into full gear (Dorado alone was 90% built by drug barons).
Canada? Heck! Without the contemporary weed biz and the late prohibition of spirits it would had looked like Mexico today...
All in all money from illegal activities is by far fast and furious when it enters a developing economy. The DR is feeling a big push from drug money as of lately, but to call it "based" on it alone is absurd in the face of the major investments in the country.
I said this a while back here plenty of times: We all know what's clean and what's from the dark side in investments taking place in the DR.
You can trace most big funding for large projects with ease to their foreign investors and know (suspect) where it comes from, on the other hand, Dominicans know who here is clean and who's dirtied with drug money.
Most Dominicans in biz don't need to deal with drugs and the aftermath of it, since the markup and profit margins here are beyond what a kilo of Cocaine or weed could offer in the clear and about face of authorities.
This is one of the few (if there are more) countries in the world where the gov must keep tabs and giving fines to biz that use speculation, large scale market price-fixing, out of this world markup margins and last but not least: Legally ripping off clients!